Bank of Canada Act

WHEREAS it is desirable to establish a central bank in Canada to regulate credit and currency in the best interests of the economic life of the nation, to control and protect the external value of the national monetary unit and to mitigate by its influence fluctuations in the general level of production, trade, prices and employment, so far as may be possible within the scope of monetary action, and generally to promote the economic and financial welfare of Canada;THEREFORE, His Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:

Short Title

Interpretation

Constitution of the Bank

Management

Executive Committee

Government Directive

Bank Staff

Secrecy

Capital and Shares

Business and Powers of the Bank

Note Issue and Removal

Redemption of Notes Other than Those of the Bank

Reserve Funds

Audit

Returns

Liability

Offences and Punishment

Liquidation or Winding-up

By-laws

(Section 16)

I, , do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully and to the best of my judgment and ability perform the duties that relate to any office or position in the Bank held by me.I also solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will notcommunicate or allow to be communicated, to any person not entitled to it, any confidential information that relates to the business or affairs of the Bank that I may learn in the course of performing those duties;use any such information for any purpose other than to perform those duties; orallow any person to inspect or have access to any books and records that belong to or that are in the possession of the Bank and that relate to the business or affairs of the Bank, unless the person is legally entitled to inspect them or to have access to them.

Schedule S II AND III

Related provisions

— 2023, c. 26, s. 237Despite sections 27 and 27.1 of the Bank of Canada Act, any ascertained surplus of the Bank of Canada during a financial year must be applied to the Bank of Canada’s retained earnings until the earlier of the following events occurs:the Bank of Canada’s retained earnings are equal to zero, andthe ascertained surplus applied to the Bank of Canada’s retained earnings is equal to its losses arising from the purchase of Government of Canada securities as part of the Government of Canada Bond Purchase Program from April 1, 2020 to April 25, 2022.

Amendments not in force

— 2026, c. 22, s. 20Section 2 of the Bank of Canada Act is amended by adding the following in alphabetical order:entity subject to assessment fees means any of the following entities:registered payment service provider; (entité assujettie à des frais d’évaluation)registered payment service provider means a payment service provider, as defined in section 2 of the Retail Payment Activities Act, that is registered under section 25 of that Act; (fournisseur de services de paiement enregistré)Section 2 of the Act is amended by adding the following in alphabetical order:accredited third-party service provider means a third-party service provider, as defined in section 2 of the Consumer-Driven Banking Act, that is accredited under section 32 of that Act; (tiers fournisseur de services accrédité)The definition entity subject to assessment fees in section 2 of the Act is amended by adding, in alphabetical order, a reference to “accredited third-party service provider” in the list of entities.Section 2 of the Act is amended by adding the following in alphabetical order:clearing house has the same meaning as in section 2 of the Payment Clearing and Settlement Act; (chambre de compensation)The definition entity subject to assessment fees in section 2 of the Act is amended by adding, in alphabetical order, a reference to “clearing house” in the list of entities.Section 2 of the Act is amended by adding the following in alphabetical order:external complaints body has the same meaning as in section 2 of the Consumer-Driven Banking Act; (organisme externe de traitement des plaintes)The definition entity subject to assessment fees in section 2 of the Act is amended by adding, in alphabetical order, a reference to “external complaints body” in the list of entities.Section 2 of the Act is amended by adding the following in alphabetical order:issuer has the same meaning as in section 2 of the Stablecoin Act; (émetteur)The definition entity subject to assessment fees in section 2 of the Act is amended by adding, in alphabetical order, a reference to “issuer” in the list of entities.Section 2 of the Act is amended by adding the following in alphabetical order:participating entity has the same meaning as in section 2 of the Consumer-Driven Banking Act; (entité participante)The definition entity subject to assessment fees in section 2 of the Act is amended by adding, in alphabetical order, a reference to “participating entity” in the list of entities. — 2026, c. 22, s. 21The Act is amended by adding the following after section 30.1:Assessment of FeesThe Bank must, before September 30 of each year, ascertain the total amount of expenses incurred by it during the immediately preceding calendar year for or in connection with the administration of the Consumer-Driven Banking Act, the Payment Clearing and Settlement Act, the Retail Payment Activities Act and the Stablecoin Act and deduct from that amountthe amounts of any categories of expenses provided for in the regulations in relation to any group of entities subject to assessment fees provided for in the regulations; andthe amounts of any fees or costs paid to it in that calendar year under any of the following provisions:subsections 15(2), 17(2), 19(2) and 32(2) of the Consumer-Driven Banking Act,section 11.18 of the Payment Clearing and Settlement Act,subsection 29(2) of the Retail Payment Activities Act, andsubsection 17(5) of the Stablecoin Act.The amount ascertained is final and conclusive for the purposes of this section.As soon as feasible after ascertaining the amount under subsection (1), the Bank must, in the manner and to the extent provided for in the regulations, assess against each entity subject to assessment fees a portion of the total amount of expenses that is attributable to those entities.If there are no regulations made under paragraph 30.6(d), the Bank must issue guidelines regarding the assessment referred to in subsection (3) and must exercise its powers and perform its duties and functions under that subsection in accordance with those guidelines.The Bank may, during each calendar year, prepare an interim assessment against any entity subject to assessment fees.In assessing fees under subsections (3) to (5), the Bank must take into account any categories of entities — and the expenses associated with those categories — provided for in the regulations.If there are no regulations made under paragraph 30.6(e), the Bank may establish categories of entities — and the expenses associated with those categories — and take them into account in assessing fees under subsections (3) to (5).The Bank may assess, against any entity subject to assessment fees, a charge provided for in the regulations and applicable disbursements for any service provided by or on behalf of the Bank for the entity’s benefit or for the benefit of a group of entities of which the entity is a member.Every assessment and interim assessment made under section 30.2 or 30.3 is final and conclusive and binding on the entity subject to assessment fees against which it is made.Every assessment and interim assessment constitutes a debt due to the Bank, is immediately payable and may be recovered as a debt in any court of competent jurisdiction.Interest may be charged on the unpaid amount of an assessment or interim assessment at a rate equal to 2% plus the rate in effect that is prescribed under the Income Tax Act for amounts payable by the Minister of National Revenue as refunds of overpayments of tax under that Act.The Bank may request in writing that an entity subject to assessment fees provide the Bank, within the time and in the manner provided for in the regulations or, if no regulations are made, within the time and in the manner determined by the Bank, with any information that the Bank considers necessary for the purposes of any of subsections 30.2(3) to (5) or section 30.3.The entity subject to assessment fees must comply with the request.The Governor in Council may make regulationsamending the definition entity subject to assessment fees, as defined in section 2, to add or remove any entity or category of entities that are subject to an Act referred to in subsection 30.2(1);amending section 2 by adding a definition of any entity or category of entities that is added to the definition entity subject to assessment fees, as defined in that section, by a regulation made under paragraph (a);respecting the categories of expenses and groups of entities subject to assessment fees referred to in paragraph 30.2(1)(a);respecting the assessment of fees for the purposes of subsection 30.2(3);respecting, for the purposes of subsection 30.2(6), the categories of entities and the expenses associated with each category;respecting any charges that the Bank may assess under section 30.3; andrespecting, for the purposes of subsection 30.5(1), the time and manner in which information is to be provided.